2012 Six Nations Rugby: Probable Starting XV for Scotand Against Wales

With Dan Parks officially out of the picture, Scotland coach Andy Robinson faces few difficult decisions in his starting XV for this weekend.

As Greig Laidlaw prepares to take over the Number 10 from the departed Parks, Robinson must chose between Chris Cusiter and Mike Blair for the scrum-half position. 

Cusiter may have turned in Scotland's best performance against England apart from Man of the Match, David Denton, but Blair looked impressive at times as Cusiter's Calcutta Cup understudy and teams up with Laidlaw at club level with Edinburgh. 

Complicating Robinson's scrum-half dilemma further is the decision to have Scotland A's Duncan Wier on the sidelines ready to replace Laidlaw against Wales. Weir plays with Cusiter with Glasgow Warriors and has been a star for Scotland A, playing a significant role the squad's authoritative 35-0 victory over England Saxons last weekend.

Beyond the scrum-half decisions, the rest of Robinson's XV is relatively straight forward. Weir's fellow Scotland A teammate, Stuart Hogg will be ready to make his senior debut on Sunday as a replacement. The nineteen year-old appears poised to make an immediate impact after his breathtaking try against England Saxons.

Additionally, Geoff Cross will replace Euan Murray as tighthead prop, as the latter does not play on Sundays for religious reasons.

What remains unclear is whether the Scottish side will be able to compete with a talented Welsh side coming home to the Millennium Stadium after their crucial victory to open the Six Nations Championship against Ireland.

Probable Scotland XV:

15 Rory Lamont             1. Allan Jacobsen

14 Max Evans               2 Ross Ford

13 Nick de Luca            3 Geoff Cross

12 Sean Lamont            4 Jim Hamilton

11 Lee Jones                5 Richie Gray

10 Greig Laidlaw           6 Alasdair Strokosch 

9 Chris Cusiter             7 Ross Rennie

                                  8 David Denton